As Amitabh Bachchan's 81st birthday approaches deRivaz & Ives achieved a resounding response to 80 percent of the Lots offered in th...
As Amitabh Bachchan's 81st birthday approaches deRivaz & Ives achieved a resounding response to 80 percent of the Lots offered in their Bachchanalia auction concluded a short while ago.
This speaks volumes
for Amitabh Bachchan's fan following and sets world records for Indian
film memorabilia. The Election Publicity Card, the Sholay Talc-box and a single
offset Showcard of Deewaar created three world records for Indian film
memorabilia.
The most bids (30)
were received for Amitabh Bachchan’s publicity card signed in Hindi and used in
the December 1984 Lok Sabha political campaign for the Allahabad constituency
against political stalwart Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna. It finally sold for Rs 67,200 - over five times its Lower Estimate. This naturally augurs very well
for the growth of the political propaganda memorabilia market in India over the
coming months and years, especially with general elections in 2024 in
the three great global democracies – India, U.S.A., and the U.K.
Other major
surprises were the prices achieved by small black and white photographs of Amitabh Bachchan in rare moments, such as with Muhammad Ali at his Beverly
Hills residence and a rare public photograph of Amitabh with his brother
Ajitabh and their father Harivansh Rai Bachchan, both eliciting many bids and
selling above their estimates.
The Showcards, both
hand-collaged and offset, also achieved much success for films such as Zanjeer,
Zameer, Deewar, and Ram Balram, all passing the Rs 50,000 price range.
As expected, all
the Sholay Lots did very well; from the set of 15 Photographic Stills mounted
on re-release Lobby Cards to the more unique tin boxes and old merchandise such
an original talc-box depicting Sholay’s ‘dosti’ scene with the
motorbike-sidecar on the box.
“The success of
this Bachchanalia sale following the wonderful response to the Satyajit Ray
sale last month, augurs very well for deRivaz & Ives’ forthcoming Feminine
Icons of Indian Cinema and Raj Kapoor @100 Auctions in November and December
2023. We see enhanced international interest in Indian film memorabilia which
will now rapidly grow in the months to come. Even though the prices are much
lower for memorabilia than the modern fine arts, these objects affect and
interest millions of Indians rather than the ownership structure for the fine
arts. Yet, they both support and complement each other,” stated a senior spokesperson
of deRivaz & Ives Auction House Private Limited.
No comments